Ammunition-hoisting apparatus for ordnance



A. DAWSON AND J. HORNE.

AMMUNITION HOISTING APPARATUS FOR ORDNANCE. APPLICATION FILED SEPT. 4. 1920.

1,402,401 Patented Jan. 3, 1922.

4 GEE-wa parser caries.

aarnna'ranvoa DAWSQN, o1" vinsriams'rnn, Loruooiv, AND JAMES HORNE, or

BARaow-m-runnnss, iznenann, .assrenons TO VIGKERS LIMITED, or WEST- MENSTEE, LONDON, ENGLAND.

AIVEMUNITIQN-HQISTING APPARATUS FOR OBDNANCE.

Application filed September To aZZ w hommay concern Be it known that we, Sir ARTHUR Tnnvoa Dawson, Bart, and JAMES HoRNE, both sub jects of the King of Great- Britain, residing, respectively, at Viclrers House, Broadway, Westminster, in the county. of London, England, and Naval Construction lVorks, Barrow-inl urness, in the county of Lancaster, England. have invented certain new and useful Improvements in or Relating to Ammunition-Hoisting Apparatus for Ordnance, (for which I have filed application in Great Britain, No. 21,098, filed Aug. 27, 1919.) of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to ammunition hoisting apparatus for ordnance and is particularly applicable to such apparatus described in the specification of our co-p-ending application Serial No, 408,323, filed September 4, 1920, in which the magazine is arranged below the level of the shell room and the powder charges are raised in a lifting cage to a position opposite the shell room in whicn position they are transferred to a second lifting or gun loading cage which also receives a projectile from the shell room.

According to the present invention we provide a trolley or carrier which is mounted on a guide arranged transversely to the ammunition trunk and serves to transport the projectiles from thebogie in the shell room to thegun loading cage. The inner portion of the guide may be hinged and may serve to bridge the compartment of the trunk in which moves the first of the aforesaid lifting cages, this portion being raised so as to clear this lifting cage during its ascent in the said compartment to the position for transferring the powder charges into the upper part of the second lifting or gun loading cage.

On the gun platform we may provide means such as power operated chain rammers for transferring the charges and projectiles from the second lifting or gun loading cage into a flash-proof conveyor arranged at the rear of the gun platform and contiguous to the breech end of the gun, power operated means being provided for traversing the said conveyor behind the gun and guides being provided for causing it to take up a correct position in line with the bore of the gun for fixed angle loading.

In order that the said invention may be Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented J an. 3, 1222.

a, 1920. Serial No. 408,325.

clearly understood and readily carried into effect we will now describe the same more fully with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which Figure 1 is a sectional side elevation showing more or less diagrammatically ammunition hoisting apparatus constructed in accordance with our invention, and

Figure 2 is a sectional rear elevation of the portion of the hoisting apparatus of Figure 1 that serves the left hand gun in a twin gun turret.

Figure 3 =is a side elevation on a larger scale showing more clearly the arrangement of the aforesaid guide for the projectile trolley or carrier, and

igure 4 isa rear elevation on a larger scale showing more clearly the arrangement of the aforesaid conveyor.

A is the turret and A is the ammunition trunk which moves with the turret in training and A is the gun loading cage mounted to move vertically in the trunk on guide rails carried thereby. B is the shell room, 13 is the usual bogie arranged in the shell room, C is the magazine arranged below the level of the shell room, C" is the lifting cage by which the powder charges are raised to a position opposite the shell room for being transferredto the second lifting or gun loading cage A", this cage being disposed in a compartment B i 'irojecting from the side of the trunk, and C is the powder charge container which is arranged at the lower part of the compartment B and serves for the transfer of the powder charges from the magazine 0 to the cage C. This container (and also each of the cages A and C) preferably has a rotary flash-proof receptacle for the powder charges as is described in the specification of our co-pending application Serial No. 408,322, field September 4, 1920.

D is the aforesaid trolley 0r carrier mounted to travel between the bogie and the cage A and D, D represent transverse guide rails constituting the aforesaid guide for the said trolley or carrier. The inner portions D of these guide rails are pivoted at d to the outer portions and serve when in the horizontal position to bridge the compartment B in which the cage C is disposed. The said inner portions of the guide rails are moved to the inoperative and operative positions by a hand lever D (see Figure E is the aforesaid movable flashproof conveyor which is arranged on the gun platform and into which the powder charges and the projectile are transferred from the cage A by means of chain rainmers e, e, a fixed bridge piece E being provided between therear end of the cage and the front end of the conveyor. The said conveyor is adapted to be traversed by a press E mounted on the gun platform, from 1ts receiving position behind the cage A to its discharging position behind the gun, and in order that the conveyor may, in moving to its discharging position, assume an inclined position in line with the bore of the gun for loading at a fixed angle, a suitable arrangement of guides is provided on which the conveyor moves so that as the latter is being moved to its discharging position it will become automatically tilted. Two guides E E (Figure 4) are provided for this purpose, the former of which is the front guide, being inclined and the guide E, which is the rear guide being horizontal. The press E is arranged at an angle which is half that at which the guide E is inclined. The said conveyor is provided with movable doors, as is well understood, for allowing the powder charges to drop onto the projectile tray portion of the conveyor after the projectlle has been rammed into the gun, the charges being deposited in one complete length so as to be rammed by one stroke of the rammer the casing of which is indicated at E* in Figure 1 and which is carried by the conveyor.

Vhat we claim and desire to secure by Letters Patent of the United States is 1- 1. In ammunition hoisting apparatus for ordnance, vthe combination with the ammunition trunk, the shell room and the magazine arranged below the level of the shell room, of a compartment extending from the side of the trunk, a lifting cage arranged in said compartment for raising powder charges to a position opposite the shell room, a gun loading cage arranged in the trunk, means for permitting the'transfer of the powder charges from said lifting cage to said gun loading cage when said cages are opposite the shell room, a guide arranged transversely to the trunk and'connected thereto and a carrier mountedon said guide for transporting shells from the shell room to said gun loading cage.

2. In ammunitionhoist-ing apparatus for.

ordnance, the combination with the ammunition trunk, the bogie thereon, the shell room and the magazine arranged below the level of the shell room, of a compartment extending from the side of the trunk, a lifting cage 7 arranged in said compartment for raising powder charges to a position opposite the shell room, a gun loading cage arranged in the trunk, means for permitting the transfer of the powder charges from said lifting cage to said gun loading cage when said cages are opposite the shell room, a guide 'arclaimed in claim 2, of a hinged inner portion 7 of the guide for the shell carrier, said inner portion when in the horizontal position serving to bridge the compartment of the trunk in which the lifting cage is arranged.

5. In ammunition loading apparatus for ordnance, the combination with the gun platform and the gun-loading cage, of a conveyor mounted on transverse guides on said platform, means for ramming the powder charges and the shell from said cage to said container and means for moving said conveyor on said guides into a loading position behind the gun, said transverse guides being so arranged that during'this movement said conveyor is automatically tilted to assume an inclined position corresponding to the loading angle of the gun.

In testimony whereof we afiix our signatures. ,s

ARTHUR TREVOR DAWSON. JAMES HORNE. 

